Best of 2018

I wanted to greet the year with the best things I am bringing to 2019 from a place of gratitude. 2018 was a year of great healing and spiritual awareness. I have been loving exploring these sides of myself and I’m grateful to be able to share them here with you.

Another year older, another year wiser?

I have been working on cultivating the best parts of myself and learning how to turn my weaknesses into strengths. I followed my dream of becoming an entrepreneur and starting my own blog. What I didn’t expect was that writing would force me to confront some inner demons that I wasn’t aware were lurking and needed healing. I took these obstacles on and kept writing, planning, and posting. I’m so glad I pushed through and I hope one day this blog will bring me enough profit to follow bigger dreams or at least help my family for a while. Disclaimer: In an effort to follow that dream I signed up for an affiliate program with Amazon, so some of the links will help me, but other links are just to the resources so you can have them for yourself.

Before 2018

About 10 years ago, when I at my heaviest weight, biggest dress size, and lowest point emotionally; I made a promise to myself. To stop the vicious cycle of eating the ‘processed garbage’ and learn how to be healthy. I had accepted that I might never have the same body type as a Victoria’s Secret angel, but I wanted to feel better. This began a journey of self improvement that has morphed, dipped, dived, and surprised me time and time again. I stopped making New Year’s resolutions that year, instead just trying to educate myself and accumulate good habits that will help me attain my ‘best life’. I know not everything I do will be applicable to everyone’s lifestyle, but I compiled a list of my favorite things from 2018, worth bringing over to 2019.

Gratitude

“Wear gratitude like a cloak and it will feed every corner of your life.”

Rumi

I’m learning to cultivate from a place of gratitude. I feel like that sounds really pretentious, so I want to explain what I mean exactly. I have always considered myself to be a ‘silver-lining’ kind of person; looking for the good in things and trying to be positive. I learned to look at everything I do and appreciate something. You will only learn to appreciate the little things if you start looking for them. If you start looking for them, I assure you will find them. When it starts becoming a habit, it will trickle down into every aspect of how you think. I’m going to throw a lot of information at you.

Self-Care Routines & Products

We started using Vital Proteins after following Lee From America on Instagram. I heard her talk about the benefits and how easy it was to use. She then posted her blog post; Collagen Q + A. I encourage you to read more about it if you don’t already have a protein or collagen supplement in your diet. I would always suggest checking with your doctor before adding any supplements.

The wonderful properties of Bragg’s Apple Cider Vinegar(ACV) have been preached to me for a while, but I didn’t really understand how to incorporate it into my life until I started following Young House Love on Instagram. Sherry explained how it is an effective skin toner and drinking some in the morning makes the whole day feel better. You can read more about using ACV for your face at the Young House Love blog post Our Go-To Household Cleaning and Personal Care Products (scroll down to the bottom if you JUST want to read about the ACV).

The last revolutionary change to my routine this year was adding essential oils. I have been familiar with the holistic properties of oils, and aware that oils fragrance all the lotions, shampoos, and other self-care products. This year I dug a little deeper and learned more about how to apply oils in my life. I found the greatest enjoyment from diffusing the oils instead of warming wax or burning candles, but that it can be beneficial in other ways, too. I wrote a whole post about my positive experience with Young Living Essential Oils that you can read about here.

Rachel Hollis & Jenna Kutcher

This was the first year I really started getting involved on Instagram and really applying myself to blogging. I put my years of study, webinar tutorials, workshops and freebies to work creating a blog that I wasn’t really in love with. I found these 2 ladies by way of 2 other wonderfully driven women. Instead of faltering, I have been built up with confidence and encouragement. I could not have asked for better role models, because they believe in sharing, serving and self-loving! Here are some gems;

• Fab 4 Smoothie & Be Well by Kelly
• Rachel’s book ‘Girl, Wash your Face’ and her documentary ‘Made For More’

Goal Digger Podcast

The thing I absolutely love about the Goal Digger podcast is how timely it is for me. It seems that no matter who the guest is or what the topic is, at some time during the podcast, I will find something that really resonates with me. Jenna Kutcher beautifully invokes the inner Goal Digger, and empowers women with the tools to build on those aspirations.

• I had heard about the Fab 4 Smoothie by Be Well By Kelly from Rachel Hollis, but when I listened to her interview with Jenna and she explained the science of the Fab 4 Smoothie. Everything finally clicked for me, hearing it in her own words(episode here).
• I have been working on my Money Mindset(Abundance) for all of 2018, and I’m always excited to learn more applications and terms associated with the concept. Jenna talks about real ways this will affect your head as an entrepreneur(listen here).

Mind & Spirit

My dad gave me a book for last Christmas and it took me a year to read it; The Four Agreements. The book has helped me in ways I am still trying to understand. The inner peace that it promised seemed really idealistic, but it is helpful to stay grounded when emotions get involved. I find myself calling on the Four agreements often, to help in my relationships with others and myself.

I saw Rebecca Campbell’s Light is the New Black available at my library. Her beautiful oracle cards can be seen across feeds and stories of other light workers online. She offers so many free meditations and spiritual retreats. I was lit up to keep following my dreams, so here we are.